“I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:14 KJV

The finish line in a race is a welcome sight. You can see the white line on the track in the distance, or maybe it’s some other mark denoting that the end is near. The sight of it, as you round the final turn, gives you one last surge of energy to meet your goal.

You might have never participated in a foot race, but I imagine you’ve done other things. Maybe you’re completing a college degree, the first in your family to graduate from a university. Maybe you’re putting the finishing touches on your dream home, a project that has been years in the making. Maybe you’re restoring an antique car, and after starting with a rusty skeleton of a frame, you can now hear the engine purr, and that shiny, fresh paint is ready to see the sunlight. 

Or maybe it’s the last chemo session. After months of following a strict treatment schedule, with only a few setbacks, you’re ready to ring the bell.

Or maybe the nine months of development are finished. Your labor pains have begun, and you’re finally about to meet your newborn baby.

Or maybe you’re nearing retirement. Your years of service are completed, and you’re looking forward to pursuing hobbies, spending time with family, or shifting to a different career.

Or maybe, after years of fighting decline, your doctor gently suggests that hospice might be the best option.

The end is in sight, but we’ve got to keep going just a little while longer.

And sometimes, it’s that last push that’s the hardest one of all.

There’s an old gospel song that reminds me of the need to keep going forward, despite the hardships we face in this life. It also reminds me of my grandfather, with his loud, off-key singing in his older years. He always sang the tenor parts, with his echoing, repeated phrases of choruses always delayed just slightly, lagging behind the rest of the congregation, a consequence of hearing loss due to age and a lifetime spent around the noise of tractor engines.

He sang with all his might, not caring whether he was perfectly in tune or on beat. He tried to keep the time, as he would move his hand up and down in a two-count rhythm with the music, the same way I imagine he was taught in the old-time singing schools by his own father. 

Some of the teenagers in the church service, as well as the occasional adult, would look around, their lips turning up with a smirk as they sought to locate the source of the sound. But their looks didn’t stop my grandfather. He just kept on singing.

“Press Along to Glory Land” was written by James Rowe, an Irish immigrant. Published in 1911, the song emphasized the need to keep going, to “press along to Glory land,” a phrase that is repeated twice in each of the four verses and is also the final line of the chorus. The Chuck Wagon Gang’s rendition reminds me so much of my grandfather’s singing, with the lead singer’s slightly flat wail that is common among my people.

It is how I hear the song in my head, repeated so many times over the years, especially during times of trial. Its sing-song melody is an instant boost to my mood, and the repetition always drives the point home: keep going, keep pressing along. Yes, you have earthly goals, but more importantly, look to the ultimate goal.

I figure the apostle Paul would appreciate the song. I also imagine that he might have been a runner or an athlete in his younger years, or he at least admired competitive sports, for all the imagery he used in different letters to compare the Christian life to a race or an athletic contest. He most certainly knew that his readers would understand his language, as athleticism was highly valued in the Roman world.

But Paul wasn’t talking about a physical race. In Philippians 3:12-14, he was describing a spiritual advancement toward the ultimate fulfillment of his Christian walk: the prize is Christ, who is waiting for him in Heaven. No attainment of a goal or reward on this earth could ever compete with the everlasting glory found around the throne of God. 

But it wasn’t time for that, not just yet. So Paul kept pressing on, spreading the Gospel message.

So did my grandfather, as he worked on his farm, told stories to anyone who would listen, and sang loudly every Sunday – no matter who gave him funny looks.

And I will keep writing, working, praying, and living.

Pressing along.

Whatever it takes, I hope you do the same.

Press along, glad soul, press along,
Giving out the message grand;
Letting love, God’s love, be your song,
Press along to Glory land.